The reward is tantalizing, shiny, golden. In the world of freestyle skiing, no female aerialist goes as big as often as Ashley Caldwell and, when she stomps her landing, almost no competitor can beat her. The risk is obvious, its toll physically and mentally painful. In the world of freestyle skiing, no female aerialist goes as big as often as Ashley Caldwell and, when she misses her landing, it can hurt in every way imaginable.
As Caldwell enters her third Olympics, she is still searching for her first medal, and still relying on the same calculation. It is an exercise in cost-benefit analysis and, for America’s best shot at a gold in aerials, it doesn’t always pay off.